Hamas

By Pesach Benson • November 26, 2025

Jerusalem, 26 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s National Center for Forensic Medicine confirmed on Wednesday morning that the body returned by Hamas the previous day was Dror Or of Kibbutz Be’eri.

Or, 49, was a chef and award-winning cheesemaker. Dror was seen being taken captive with his wife and two of their three children from their burning home.

The body of his wife, Yonat, was found several days after the attack. The children, Noam and Alma, were release during a temporary ceasefire in November 2023. Another son, Yahli, was not at Be’eri that day.

Israel confirmed Or’s death based on intelligence in May 2024.

Or is survived by his three children, his parents, and two siblings.

Around 1,200 people were killed and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel. The bodies of Israeli Police Master Sgt. Ran Gvili and Thai agricultural worker Sudthisak Rinthalak remain in Gaza.

s and one Thai national are still held in Gaza.

By TPS-IL • November 25, 2025

Jerusalem, 25 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Two years after Iran-backed Hamas terrorists stormed southern Israel, residents of Sderot — one of the hardest-hit communities — launched its first-ever film festival dedicated to Iranian cinema.

The two-day event, which opened on Monday, has already drawn criticism from the Iranian news agency Fars, which accused “Zionists” of taking Iranian films “hostage.”

Dana Sameach, the Israeli founder of the festival, and Younes Sadaghiani, an Iranian-born political analyst hosted by Israel’s Foreign Ministry, told The Press Service of Israel that the festival is about cultural connection, not political confrontation.

“We wanted to do this festival for two reasons: first, to show that from the area of the worst catastrophe in the history of Israel, there is not only grief but culture, with people who know how to reach out their hand in peace and hope for a better future. Second, we wanted to honor Farsi culture. There are many Israelis of Farsi origin, and we want to honor the culture of the Iranian people,” Sameach explained.

Sadaghiani emphasized that Persians and Israelis are not enemies.

“I think the Persian culture and Israeli culture are very, very similar. So when people say they want to make us enemies, we are not enemies. Persians and Israelis are not enemies. It’s the Islamic Republic that is the issue, so we need to get rid of the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic is not Iran,” he told TPS-IL.

They shared with TPS-IL a report from the Fars website claiming Israel “is attempting to take another Iranian film hostage.” It was referring to the possibility that a film by Asghar Farhadi, one of the most prominent Iranian directors, will be screened at the festival’s closing ceremony.

The report also accused Israel of “killing more than a thousand Iranians during the sacred twelve days of war,” referencing the 12-day air confrontation between israel and Iran last June.

Israel launched preemptive strikes against Iranian nuclear sites on June 13, citing intelligence that Tehran had reached “a point of no return” in its pursuit of nuclear weapons. During 12 days of fighting, Iranian missile strikes killed 28 Israelis and injured over 3,000.

The festival includes not only award-winning Iranian films but also Persian music, food, talks, and cultural performances. The program has received full encouragement from Sderot’s municipality, Sameach said, and hundreds are expected to attend.

Sameach added she hopes the festival, titled “Nowruz,” which means “new day” in Farsi, will signal a new dawn in relations with the Iranian people and grow into a yearly cultural tradition in a city still rebuilding from October 7.

By Pesach Benson • November 25, 2025

Jerusalem, 25 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday condemned what he called an unacceptable delay by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in returning the body of a hostage found in central Gaza, saying the hold-up violates existing understandings.

“In light of the Islamic Jihad’s announcement regarding the location of findings related to a deceased hostage, Israel views with severity the delay in their immediate transfer into its hands,” Netanyahu’s office said. “This constitutes a further violation of the agreement. Israel demands the immediate return of the three deceased hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip.”

More than 24 hours have passed since Islamic Jihad confirmed Al Jazeera’s report that the body of a hostage was discovered near Nuseirat on Monday.

Hamas typically announces plans to transfer recovered remains, even when they are held by Islamic Jihad. However, Hamas has not issued any statement, and Islamic Jihad has given no indication it intends to hand over the body. Neither terror group has been in touch with the International Red Cross, which transfers remains between the terror groups and the Israel Defense Forces.

Around 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel. The bodies of two Israelis — Dror Or and Master Sgt. Ran Gvili — and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak are still in Gaza.

By Ehud Amiton/TPS • November 23, 2025

Jerusalem, 23 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — The Israel Defense Forces confirmed on Sunday that it killed Alaa Hadidi, head of Hamas’s supply and equipment department, in an airstrike in Gaza on Saturday.

“Hadidi was a central knowledge center in the organization’s supply and production field and served during the war as a conduit for transferring weapons from Hamas headquarters to battalions and commanders in the field for fighting against our forces,” the IDF said.

The escalation followed a Hamas threat to end the ceasefire, triggered by a Palestinian gunman opening fire on Israeli troops in southern Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Office confirmed that five senior Hamas officials were killed in the subsequent airstrikes, a move a US official said the Trump administration supports.

“The IDF will not tolerate attacks on our forces, and we will continue to target those responsible for terrorism,” an Israeli military spokesperson said.

The incident began Saturday morning when a gunman crossed the Yellow Line—the border dividing Israeli and Hamas-controlled Gaza—approaching IDF troops in a vehicle while using the humanitarian corridor. Soldiers returned fire, killing the operative. “He aimed his weapon at our soldiers, endangering civilians in the area,” the IDF stated, releasing footage of the confrontation.

Following the initial attack, Israeli warplanes struck multiple Hamas positions across Gaza. The identities of the four other senior Hamas officials killed alongside Hadidi have not been publicly disclosed. “These strikes disrupt Hamas’s ability to arm its fighters and threaten Israeli communities,” Netanyahu said in a statement.

In a related development, the IDF announced that it neutralized all 17 Palestinian terrorists who had attempted to escape from a Hamas tunnel on Israeli-controlled land in eastern Rafah. They had emerged Friday from underground hideouts and sought to return to the Hamas side of the Yellow Line.

“After a 24-hour operation, all infiltrators were either killed or captured,” the IDF said.

Around 1,200 people were killed and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel. The bodies of two Israelis and one Thai national are still held in Gaza.

By Pesach Benson • November 20, 2025

Jerusalem, 20 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israeli military intelligence says Hamas used the Gaza-based charity Qawafel al-Khair to support its armed operations. Documents recovered in the territory show the organization provided money, construction aid, and logistics to the group’s Al-Qassam Brigades, the Israel Defense Forces disclosed on Thursday.

“These documents expose only the tip of the iceberg of the phenomenon of Hamas using funds from so-called humanitarian organizations for terrorist purposes,” tweeted the IDF’s chief Arabic spokesperson, Maj. Ella Waweya. “Hamas, which claims to care about supporting the Strip’s residents, exploits donations intended to improve living conditions for Gaza’s population in order to support its members and finance its brutal activities.”

Analysis indicates that in 2023, Hamas met with several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to coordinate funding, with Qawafel al-Khair playing a key role. According to the IDF, donations labeled as humanitarian were redirected to train terrorists and distribute thousands of food parcels to members of the group. Other documents reportedly showed Hamas requesting economic support from the charity for individual operatives.

Qawafel al-Khair says it delivers food, clothing, and aid to Gazans affected by the blockade and ongoing conflict. Donors can sponsor orphans, food packages, tents, and other basic needs. The charity, founded in Gaza in 2015, originally operated under the name Ruba Al-Khair.

In June, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned what it called “five sham charities” for providing financial support to Hamas under the guise of humanitarian work. Qawafel al-Khair was not among the five.

Following a lengthy investigation led by the Mossad for Intelligence and Special Operations, and thanks to cooperation with European intelligence and law enforcement agencies, terrorist infrastructures built by Hamas with the aim of carrying out attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets have recently been thwarted.

Law and enforcement authorities in Europe, including in Germany and Austria, have conducted a series of complex counter-terrorism operations, resulting in the arrest of terrorist operatives and the discovery of weapons caches intended for use by terrorist cells to harm innocent people ‘on the day the order is given.’

In a special operation by the Austrian State Security and Intelligence Directorate (DSN) in Vienna last September, a weapons hideout containing handguns and explosive devices was uncovered and confiscated. The investigation of those involved revealed that the items hidden in the cache belonged to Hamas operative Muhammad Na’im, the son of senior Hamas Political Bureau member abroad, Basem Na’im, who is close to Khalil al-Hayya, the Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip. The involvement of the organization’s leadership from Qatar in promoting terrorist activities is not being exposed for the first time, even though the movement’s senior officials have repeatedly denied it publicly, as part of their effort to protect the image of the Hamas organization in the eyes of international public opinion.

By Pesach Benson and Omer Novoselsky • November 18, 2025

Jerusalem, 18 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — After two years of war, reserve duty students in Israeli higher education institutions are expressing widespread dissatisfaction with academic support, according to a State Comptroller report released on Tuesday. Reservist students also shared with The Press Service of Israel their experiences of repeatedly moving between class and combat.

The report, prepared by State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman, examined how Israel’s higher education system responded to the unprecedented mobilization that followed the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The Comptroller regularly audits Israel’s preparedness and the effectiveness of government policies.

According to the report, approximately 60,000 students—roughly 18% of all Israeli students—served in reserve duty during the 2023–24 academic year, with many serving extended periods. About 10,000 students served over 90 days between January and June 2024, representing more than half of that academic period.

“Students were required to mobilize for extended periods for the security of the state and its citizens; therefore, the Council for Higher Education and institutions must ensure that all rights they are entitled to and the required resources are fully secured to prevent, as much as possible, any harm to their academic, professional, and employment advancement,” the report stated. The Council for Higher Education is the regulatory body responsible for overseeing Israel’s higher education institutions.

However, surveys conducted by the State Comptroller revealed shortcomings. While 72% of institutions believed students were highly satisfied with academic support, only 31% of students reported high satisfaction levels. A striking 41% of surveyed students indicated they were dissatisfied with the assistance their institutions offered due to absences from reserve duty.

The report highlights mismatches between what students found most helpful and what institutions actually provided. Students identified tutoring sessions, written summaries of lectures, intensive courses, and completion weeks as most beneficial, yet many institutions failed to offer these services adequately.

Financial concerns were also a critical issue. Englman’s report found that 12% of 25 surveyed institutions did not provide full tuition refunds to reserve duty students who withdrew from studies, and 32% did not refund registration fees.

“The Council for Higher Education did not establish guidelines … concerning financial refunds for registration cancellation and tuition refunds for students who were called to reserve duty and forced to cancel or discontinue their studies,” the report noted.

Budget utilization revealed additional problems. Institutions used only NIS 124 million ($38.45 million) of the NIS 195 million ($60.47 million) allocated specifically for supporting reserve duty students—less than two-thirds of available funds.
The audit also documented 1,423 reserve duty students who dropped out during the 2023–24 academic year. No comprehensive analysis was conducted to identify reasons for student attrition, Englman reported.

From Combat to Campus and Back

Interviews with reservist students illuminate the personal impact behind these figures. TPS-IL changed the names of the students because none wanted to be identified by name. As one student put it, “I don’t want arrest warrants.”

Ronnie, 29, is a computer science student at Ariel University. In the last two years, he has served 350 days in a tank unit and has another round of reserve duty coming up.

“I was in my final year of studies when the war began. I went into five months of reserve duty. Obviously the whole beginning of the academic year went down the drain… Luckily, it was my last year, so there wasn’t that much left.”

He recalled the challenges of returning from combat to campus. “There were days where I had just come from Gaza. Seeing people living a normal daily life – it was a crazy shock. It takes time to adjust.”

Then there were the professional setbacks: “For two years, I had nothing to look for in terms of employment… Every two or three months I had reserve duty. It’s like a wheel rolling downhill – over time it gets harder.”

Benny, 25, is studying psychology and economics, also at Ariel University. He served approximately 300 days.

“It was hard for me that reserve duty hit right at the beginning of the academic year… But specifically at Ariel, they’re very, very supportive… Alternative assessments instead of exams, tutors, flexibility with assignments. You feel the hug for reservists.”

He added, “They should make it possible for you to go to reserve duty with peace of mind, or at least as much peace as possible, and not constantly be stressed about studying in the middle of nowhere. There were people opening textbooks in Gaza.”

Uri, a political science student at Hebrew University of Jerusalem has done 370 days of reserve duty. “Since the war, the reserves themselves have become my routine and everything else has taken a lower place… The transition from making life-and-death decisions to sitting in a classroom is intense. It requires a lot of mental strength,” he told TPS-IL.

“What I would like the public to understand is that there is a huge gap around the experience of war itself between civilian and military society. While civil society has long since adapted to the situation, those who are in the reserves continue to experience the war at its peak,” he added.

Michael’s studies in politics and media at the Jerusalem Multidisciplinary Academic Center were interrupted by 350 days of reserve duty.

“The college is very considerate. Exemptions from courses helped me the most… They could have told a student to deal with it, but they came to their aid,” he told TPS-IL.

“The exemptions from the courses are the things that helped me the most, The fact they gave me an exemption from a course and reduced my load,” he added.

The State Comptroller recommended that the Council for Higher Education develop a long-term strategic plan for supporting reserve duty students, establish systematic oversight mechanisms, mandate periodic satisfaction surveys, and examine options for requiring institutions to provide full refunds to students forced to withdraw due to military service.

“These steps will reflect the state’s commitment to reserve duty soldiers who have sacrificed and continue to sacrifice greatly for the State of Israel and its residents,” the report said.